McCain goes on offense, links Obama to credit crisis
posted at 1:20 pm on September 18, 2008 by Ed Morrissey
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John McCain shifted gears in Iowa today and reminded voters in Cedar Rapids that he predicted the outcome of the credit crisis two years ago, and few bothered to act. McCain also aggressively painted Barack Obama as a prime example of do-nothing politicians co-opted by lobbyist money. His speech pointed out the amount of money Obama has received from Fannie/Freddie donors and the advisers he uses that helped create the crisis (emphases mine):
Senator Obama talks a tough game on the financial markets but the facts tell a different story. He took more money from Fannie and Freddie than any Senator but the Democratic chairman of the committee that regulates them. He put Fannie Mae’s CEO who helped create this disaster in charge of finding his Vice President. Fannie’s former General Counsel is a senior advisor to his campaign. Whose side do you think he is on? When I pushed legislation to reform Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, Senator Obama was silent. He didn’t lift a hand to avert this crisis. While the leaders of Fannie and Freddie were lining the pockets of his campaign, they were sowing the seeds of the financial crisis we see today and enriching themselves with millions of dollars in payments. That’s not change, that’s what’s broken in Washington.
He also goes after the Brave Sir Robin Congress:
Those same Congressional leaders who give Senator Obama his marching orders are now saying that this mess isn’t their fault and they aren’t going to take any action on this crisis until after the election. Senator Obama’s own advisers are saying that crisis will benefit him politically. My friends, that is the kind of me-first, country-second politics that are broken in Washington.
And he rips Joe Biden and his comment this morning about taxes being “patriotic”:
Today Senator Obama’s running mate said that raising taxes is patriotic. Raising taxes in a tough economy isn’t patriotic. It’s not a badge of honor. It’s just dumb policy.
This shows a rapid response capability that could turn this into a solid campaign theme for McCain. Today is Thursday. If Team McCain hammers on Biden’s inept comment, especially as a way to show that Obama/Biden would raise taxes as a matter of first recourse in any situation, then he could own the weekend news cycle with both that and Obama’s inaction to, and coziness with, the Fannie/Freddie people who in large part created the problem in the first place.
Full speech follows …
I’m happy to be introduced by Governor Palin, but I can’t wait until I introduce her to Washington. Let me offer an advance warning to the big spending, greedy, do nothing, me first, country second crowd in Washington and on Wall Street: change is coming.
We need reform in Washington and on Wall Street. The financial markets are in crisis. Times are tough. Enormous strain is being put on working families and individuals in America. I know that the events unfolding can be difficult to understand for many Americans. The dominos that we have seen fall this week began with the corruption and manipulation of our home loan system. The reason this crisis started was the abuses that took place within our home loan agencies, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and within our home loan system.
Two years ago I warned this Administration and Congress that regulations for our home loan agencies, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, needed to be fixed…
But nothing was done.
Senator Obama talks a tough game on the financial markets but the facts tell a different story. He took more money from Fannie and Freddie than any Senator but the Democratic chairman of the committee that regulates them. He put Fannie Mae’s CEO who helped create this disaster in charge of finding his Vice President. Fannie’s former General Counsel is a senior advisor to his campaign. Whose side do you think he is on? When I pushed legislation to reform Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, Senator Obama was silent. He didn’t lift a hand to avert this crisis. While the leaders of Fannie and Freddie were lining the pockets of his campaign, they were sowing the seeds of the financial crisis we see today and enriching themselves with millions of dollars in payments. That’s not change, that’s what’s broken in Washington.
There was no transparency into the books of Wall Street banks. Banks and brokers took on huge amounts of debt and they hid the riskiest investments. Mismanagement and greed became the operating standard while regulators were asleep at the switch.
The primary regulator of Wall Street, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) kept in place trading rules that let speculators and hedge funds turn our markets into a casino. They allowed naked short selling — which simply means that you can sell stock without ever owning it. They eliminated last year the uptick rule that has protected investors for 70 years. Speculators pounded the shares of even good companies into the ground.
The Chairman of the SEC serves at the appointment of the President and has betrayed the public’s trust. If I were President today, I would fire him.
We cannot wait any longer for more failures in our financial system. Structures like the resolution trust corporation that dealt with the failed savings and loan industry were designed to clean up the system and worked. Today we need a plan that doesn’t wait until the system fails. I am calling for the creation of the mortgage and financial institutions trust – the MFI. The priorities of this trust will be to work with the private sector and regulators to identify institutions that are weak and take remedies to strengthen them before they become insolvent. For troubled institutions this will provide an orderly process through which to identify bad loans and eventually sell them.
This will get the treasury and other financial regulatory authorities in a proactive position instead of reacting in a crisis mode to one situation after the other. The MFI will enhance investor and market confidence, benefit sound financial institutions, assist troubled institutions and protect our financial system, while minimizing taxpayer exposure. Tomorrow I will be talking in greater detail about the crisis facing our markets and what I will do as President to fix this crisis and get our economy moving again.
Senator Obama has never made the kind tough reform we need today. His idea of reform is what his party leaders in Congress order him to do. We tried for bipartisan ethics reform and he walked away from it because his bosses didn’t want real change. I know how to make the change that Senator Obama and this Congress is afraid of. I’ve fought both parties to shake up up Washington and I’m going to do it as President.
Those same Congressional leaders who give Senator Obama his marching orders are now saying that this mess isn’t their fault and they aren’t going to take any action on this crisis until after the election. Senator Obama’s own advisers are saying that crisis will benefit him politically. My friends, that is the kind of me-first, country-second politics that are broken in Washington. My opponent sees an economic crisis as a political opportunity instead of a time to lead. Senator Obama isn’t change, he’s part of the problem with Washington.
When AIG was bailed out, I didn’t like it, but I understood it needed to be done to protect hard working Americans with insurance policies and annuities. Senator Obama didn’t take a position. On the biggest issue of the day, he didn’t know what to think. He may not realize it, but you don’t get to vote present as President of the United States.
While Senator Obama and Congressional leaders don’t know what to think about the current crisis, we know what their plans are for the economy. Today Senator Obama’s running mate said that raising taxes is patriotic. Raising taxes in a tough economy isn’t patriotic. It’s not a badge of honor. It’s just dumb policy. The billions in tax increases that Senator Obama is proposing would kill even more jobs during tough economic times. I’m not going to let that happen.
I have seen tough times before. I know how to shake-up Wall Street and Washington. I will get this economy moving. I will lead us through this crisis by fighting for you, and when I am President we will be stronger than ever before.
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I said this on another board. Don’t fear, true, the MSM won’t play it, but the nets will and more importantly, the debates are ALL still coming. As the economy is the prime issue this election, all McCain has to do to the first economic question is reword this passage:
Two years ago I warned this Administration and Congress that regulations for our home loan agencies, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, needed to be fixed…
But nothing was done.
Senator Obama talks a tough game on the financial markets but the facts tell a different story. He took more money from Fannie and Freddie than any Senator but the Democratic chairman of the committee that regulates them. He put Fannie Mae’s CEO who helped create this disaster in charge of finding his Vice President. Fannie’s former General Counsel is a senior advisor to his campaign. Whose side do you think he is on? When I pushed legislation to reform Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, Senator Obama was silent. He didn’t lift a hand to avert this crisis. While the leaders of Fannie and Freddie were lining the pockets of his campaign, they were sowing the seeds of the financial crisis we see today and enriching themselves with millions of dollars in payments. That’s not change, that’s what’s broken in Washington.
and the millions of Americans watching the debates who didn’t see it in the media will see it then. Game, set and match to McCain.
Rogue on September 18, 2008 at 1:56 PM
Yep, you’ve pretty much summarized the news this evening. Sadly.
McCain’s speech will be limited to “grumpy old guy nearly has a heart attack”
Obama will have “inspired his voters”
lorien1973 on September 18, 2008 at 1:56 PM
the book sounds interesting. I like your comments here in general too. Can you link to your blog?
forest on September 18, 2008 at 1:56 PM
I can see why you might have read it that way, but what McCain is talking about is a new version of the Resolution Trust Corp. which unraveled the savings and loans in the early 1990s. That was indeed a massive government enterprise, but it worked and eventually it went away. It avoided a massive bank run that would have produced a depression.
One of the things that is continuing to drag this crisis out is that there are thousands of subprime mortgages and mortgage-backed securities sitting out there whose value is unknown because there are no buyers for them at any price. Companies holding these loans and securities have taken staggering writedowns on them which have led to margin and capital calls, and liquidity crunches that have forced many of them out of business and others to sell at fire sale prices. A government agency to buy these loans and securities, hold them for a while, and get them off the books of the big institutions that own them would allow them some breathing room and make their balance sheets more realistic so that investment capital mght return to this market.
This is not an original idea McCain is proposing, but it is a very specific solution that could help enormously. And Congress could do it tomorrow. Mccain has laid down a gauntlet to Reid and Pelosi and Obama to do something NOW, and not play politics with this crisis until January. It might be too late by then.
rockmom on September 18, 2008 at 1:56 PM
Doug on September 18, 2008 at 1:39 PM
Yeah – I think you’re giving them too much credit to come up with something that complex.
On the other hand, from Wiki: George Soros has made his mark as an enormously successful speculator, wise enough to largely withdraw when still way ahead of the game.
tru2tx on September 18, 2008 at 1:57 PM
Lets see…
He promised to put forward “Comprehensive immigration reform” on his first day in office.
He is still a Global warmist who wants a Cap and Trade system, which will give defacto government control of industry.
He just put forward a plan to oversee and gain control of the Financial Industry of America…
He already put an unelected board in charge of Freedom of Political Speech with McCain/Feingold…
Barry is a Socialist, but McCain’s policies are Socialist, and anti Freedom, as well…
Romeo13 on September 18, 2008 at 1:57 PM
Better late than never. Hopefully not too late, though. The ads for this line of attack need to be thick as flies on an Alaska mudflat.
Dave, McCain isn’t pro-regulation but considering he fathered the biggest regulation of political speech in the history of the U.S., the anti-regulation moniker doesn’t quite fit either.
He’s got at least as high a pragmatism/ideology ratio as Obama.
DrSteve on September 18, 2008 at 1:59 PM
If AP did this post, he would have titled somehow to include the word obligatory. For him and the minions like him, truth does not matter – it often just gets in the way.
Fuquay Steve on September 18, 2008 at 1:59 PM
I was surprised today when I heard part of what McCain said on the radio. So some people are listening to him.
As for firing the head of the SEC, I don’t know about that. Who else would want the job right now.
Terrye on September 18, 2008 at 2:01 PM
Mav UNLOADS on O!
RocketmanBob on September 18, 2008 at 2:01 PM
John McCain: “I’m always for less regulation”.
John McCain: “The fundamentals of the economy are strong”.
John McCain as the caped crusader for oversight and reform is about as convincing as O.J. Simpson’s search for the real killer.
KentAllard on September 18, 2008 at 2:01 PM
As for going after Bush, it should be remembered he did try time and again after 2003 to get Congress to deal with this. They responded to him the same way they responded to McCain in 2005. What problem?
Terrye on September 18, 2008 at 2:02 PM
To me, this is the best line of the speech. But the problem is that McCain came out the day before and said that he opposed the bailout… So he can’t really capitalize on this argument.
Outlander on September 18, 2008 at 2:02 PM
So, in other words, he wants to bring back the Resolution Trust, and give it more authority and power?
Sounded like he wanted a permanent PROACTIVE (his words) Board.
And as a second point, wasn’t Fannie and Freddie supposed to be there to “buy” those loans? Were they not created to put liquidity in the market, hold those loans, then sell them as assets? I thought that what THEY were supposed to do…. will this just be a new Fannie and Freddie?
Romeo13 on September 18, 2008 at 2:03 PM
Maverick, I have a suggestion for a slight wording change:
The Monster on September 18, 2008 at 2:03 PM
Kent:
John McCAin did try to deal with this in the past. That is a hell of a lot more than can be said for Barack Obama. And the fundamentals of the economy are strong. If they were not all those gazillionare celebs would not have had the excess cash to throw a party for their favorite politician. I am sure Barack looked lovely when he visited Babs and a few her bestest friends.
Terrye on September 18, 2008 at 2:05 PM
Now keep hammering this theme, and moreso, make a campaign ad out of it. Obama responds to campaign ads becuase he has to – it’s how McCain can do an end run around the pro-Obama MSM.
thirteen28 on September 18, 2008 at 2:05 PM
He did it 2 days ago too. The only part anyone heard was when McCain chided Obama for going to that fund raiser. The best part of the speech, oddly enough, did not make a single news cast. Not even Fox.
lorien1973 on September 18, 2008 at 2:06 PM
And Obama as the post-partisan, country first American is even less convincing.
BadgerHawk on September 18, 2008 at 2:06 PM
Romeo:
I have heard this discussed before and I don’t think so. It is not supposed to be funded or regulated the same way.
Terrye on September 18, 2008 at 2:07 PM
Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac etal are not a function of de-regulation. Its a function of bad policy since 1994.
lorien1973 on September 18, 2008 at 2:08 PM
The two main reasons for the current crunch are: 1. The Community Redevelopment Act, and 2. Sarbanes-Oxley. The CRA pushed Fannie Mae to make virtually unsecured loans on real estate to folks who had bad credit. They also greased the pockets of any politician who looked their way. Sarbanes-Oxley forced the backers of the loans, and the derivatives holders like Morgan Stanley and AIG to constantly re-value their securities, and sell or recapitalize when the ratio was too low; as they sell or try to raise capital reserves, they lower their own rating, feeding an ever downward spiraling rating, which caused the recent collapses.
Government is the problem, not the solution. McCain is sounding too anti-capitalist and too populist here.
Vashta.Nerada on September 18, 2008 at 2:13 PM
Yes. They have the OODA loop down pat. The last two days they seemed to have been struggling but what they were actually doing was drawing Obama into his position (which was to basically not take one and also go to a celebrity fest all the while talking the country down). In essence they were Observing, Orienting, Deciding and now they are absolutely Acting.
PS: Look forward to your blog Rockmom
JonPrichard on September 18, 2008 at 2:13 PM
I’m just going by what McCain said in his speech, and it scares the Bejesus out of me.
I definatly need more details on both this plan, and what he thinks the cap and trade system will look like.
With his recent promise to bring forth Comp Immigration reform on his first day in office…
Wow… just wow… I was going to vote for him because I liked the Palin pick… but these three things could really mess this country up.
Romeo13 on September 18, 2008 at 2:13 PM
I wish he would name names Pelosi and Reid. Might help us gain some Republican seats in November.
Brat on September 18, 2008 at 2:14 PM
~10 point drop in Gallup in the past week tells me a different story.
lorien1973 on September 18, 2008 at 2:14 PM
Don’t forget the Hollywood fundraiser was organized by one Penny Pritzker.
Heckuva job, Penny!
DrSteve on September 18, 2008 at 2:15 PM
McCain should really just do this.
Say. If a candidate has an (I) next to his name, vote for the other guy. They wanna go home during the financial crisis, send them home permanently.
lorien1973 on September 18, 2008 at 2:15 PM
Shiiiit. That’s the best talking point to add to this mix.
lorien1973 on September 18, 2008 at 2:16 PM
MAVERICK! MAVERICK! MAVERICK!
Man! This is what I am talking about! Own this isue McCain!!! It ours! Obama is all wet with all the former Fanniegate CEO’s on his economic team.
Hang him on a meathook McCain!
On top of that, you can also distance yourself from Bush with this, and also stagnant Obama’s play to paint you as McSame!
1 shot, 2 issues in your favor Mac!!!!
Dont let up! Let it rip sir!
TheHat on September 18, 2008 at 2:16 PM
The excerpt I heard a while ago on Fox completely skipped the part about firing Cox or the part about Obama’s connection to the whole mess on Wall Street.
Then I turned to MSNBC and the talking point of the day seems to be that McCain is running more and more like a “Typical Republican”. I heard two Dems saying that within minutes of each other… Yes Republicans go around demanding that other Republicans be held to account for the horrible job of oversight they do every day. I wish.
I’m getting tired of being outraged. I have little hope that the country will be spared from comunism because the Media just refuses to cover the race fairly.
petunia on September 18, 2008 at 2:17 PM
The problem with Fannie and Freddie were that they were semi-private businesses backed up by taxpayer money. Their managers could make millions in shareholder bonuses in good times on risky investments, without being worried about downside risk. With such an incentive and no risk, who wouldn’t be greedy and reckless?
McCain’s proposed Mortgage and Financial Institutions Trust is probably a good stopgap measure, but it needs to be run as a completely-government entity, with clearly defined rules, regulations, and lending criteria, and those running it cannot have any financial incentive in bending the rules. If a bureaucrat breaks the rules, he’s out the door.
There’s nothing wrong with private banks, but if they make risky investments, they should lose THEIR money, not OURS.
If government (taxpayers’) money is on the line, then the government makes the rules. It’s the hybrid government-supported semi-private institutions like Fannie and Freddie that are hotbeds of corruption, where managers can reap huge rewards without risk, and prudence goes out the window.
Steve Z on September 18, 2008 at 2:18 PM
Fannie and freddie were small agencies with limited business throughout their history, until Jim Johnson got there. He grew them exponentially and took advantage of the very weak regulatory structure around them. Then he built a gigantic political and lobbying machine to fend off any serious regulation. Some of the biggest banks in the country have been complaining to Congress and two consecutive Administrations about them but such was the power of Johnson and then Frank Raines that even the big 5 banks and the Wall Street Jounral editorial page could not get anything done about them. Even their hanky=panky accounting was not discovered for 5 years, and all that happened then was that Frank Raines resigned in disgrace. Nobody wen tot jail and even thier stock sales did not diminish.
It took another 3 years to get a serious regulatory structure enacted, and even that only happened because the Administration had leverage to attach it to a mortgage bailout bill that Democrats desperately wanted. Chris Dodd NEVER HELD A SINGLE HEARING on Fannie and Freddie after taking over the Banking Committee in 2007.
rockmom on September 18, 2008 at 2:18 PM
Obama sees the crisis as “caused by lax regulations” but ignores the actions of the people on his team. That’s a very strange phenomenology you’ve got there, Senator Obama.
DrSteve on September 18, 2008 at 2:18 PM
Yes that is true. But all we can hope is that facts get put into history books and not Democratic drivel… But even that is such a slight chance.
petunia on September 18, 2008 at 2:21 PM
It’s obvious McCain is taking the political heat from the stock market disaster and also that the constant media barrage on Sarah Palin is having an effect. I’m worried that we have lost the momentum, but it’s up to McCain to bounce back and to come up with a plan that he can sell to the American people.
The debates have become all the more important.
Outlander on September 18, 2008 at 2:21 PM
*shrug*
Here’s the real problem. 70% of the country knows the media is in the tank for Obama. 50% of the country is happy with that fact.
lorien1973 on September 18, 2008 at 2:22 PM
No offense, but do you still trust any government agency, considering they caused this mess? Good luck finding any honest politicians or bureaucrats out there. This proposal of McCain’s will be as lousy as the RTC was, only about seven times more expensive.
Vashta.Nerada on September 18, 2008 at 2:23 PM
I feel like we are watching a sinking ship… and nothing can be done. MSNBC et. al. should be tried for treason for what they are doing to this election. If straight news was had the Dems would be driven into the ocean.
petunia on September 18, 2008 at 2:23 PM
I know and if Obama wins it will just keep on… they will pretend everything he does is miraculous. I just am feeling hopeless about the country today. After watching TV for awhile. No wonder the polls are headed south. It is embarrassing to watch. Just shameful.
petunia on September 18, 2008 at 2:26 PM
Meh. If you study the movement of the polls between the conventions and November in previous elections you will see similar volatility. Even then, take it with two aspirin and a grain of salt. This election has so far violated the CW at every turn and is one for the history books.
ManlyRash on September 18, 2008 at 2:26 PM
Why thank you, Senator Davis.
Hey rockmom, didn’t Freddie pay the biggest FEC fine in history?
DrSteve on September 18, 2008 at 2:26 PM
In far too many cases, including the present one, government involvement is the cause of the problem.
ManlyRash on September 18, 2008 at 2:29 PM
Can we PLEASE stop the freaking out now? This campaign and this candidate KNOW WHAT THEY ARE DOING
Tav on September 18, 2008 at 2:32 PM
How bout in an ad:
Harry Reid: No one knows what to do.
John McCain: WE know what to do! I warned of this type of crisis years ago. While Barack Obama was taking money from the heads of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to keep these bad loans coming in so they could personally make millions, I was co-sponsoring Federal Housing Enterprise Regulatory Reform Act of 2005, S. 190 to urge quick reform of these companies, which had been caught intentionally manipulating financial reports to trigger bonuses for senior executives. Two of these executives are Franklin Raines, Former Fannie Mae CEO/Lehman Executive, and Jim Johnson, former Fannie Mae CEO — both advisers to Barack Obama this year.
The Democratic Congress is clueless about what to do now. Five years ago, the New York Times reported that “The Bush administration today recommended the most significant regulatory overhaul in the housing finance industry since the savings and loan crisis a decade ago.” The Democrats blocked those efforts. Representative Barney Frank of Massachusetts, the ranking Democrat on the Financial Services Committee, said, “These two entities — Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac — are not facing any kind of financial crisis.”
Americans don’t need government leadership that refuses to admit and solve crises. We don’t need a government that promises to spend MORE of your hard earned money, with higher taxes and more mis-managed government programs. We need government leadership that will spend less and TAKE less of our citizens’ money to begin with. We need to pare down wasteful spending, reform programs with outdated laws and regulatory oversight, and give our citizens back their government, just like Sarah Palin did for the residents of Alaska. That is exactly what I will do for Washington, and I will welcome assistance from any side of the aisle to get it done for the American people. I’ve been a maverick my whole career, and as your President, I WILL make the needed changes in Washington so that it works FOR America again.
How bout a 2-minute ad like that?
eucher on September 18, 2008 at 2:32 PM
You are beginning to worry me. Take a deep breath for your own sake, and chill.
captivated_dem on September 18, 2008 at 2:36 PM
Vashta.Nerada on September 18, 2008 at 2:13 PM
Great summary and spot on.
The people who run government are cut from the same flawed mold as the rest of us humans. They aren’t perfect and because of their power, I would argue they are just as corruptible as they claim CEOs running huge corporations are. Having ‘government oversight’ is just transferring the onus from one set of flawed humans to another; there isn’t anything magical about government or the people in them.
Make sure there are laws that punish law breaking in the corporation world (tax evasion, misstatement of profits, etc) and let the free market do the rest. Corporations have an easily understood motive – profit – so if the punishment for illegal behaviour is severe enough and runs the risk of ruining the corporation, the instances of lawlessness will diminish. The government’s only motive is to get more power over you, and that should be resisted at all costs.
linlithgow on September 18, 2008 at 2:37 PM
er… them = it; corporation = corporate. Obviously lunch time and I’m not thinking straight. =P
linlithgow on September 18, 2008 at 2:38 PM
Except that the RTC actually worked. They found some very smart and honest people to run it, who had come out of some of those failed S&Ls.. There are a lot of very smart and honest people who are out of work now on Wall Street.
The RTC was expensive but it did not explode the deficit or hurt the economy, despite billions of dollars inassets that disappeared in those failed S&Ls. It;s one of the remarkable success stories of government. President Bush (41) never gets enough credit for making it happen on his watch.
rockmom on September 18, 2008 at 2:39 PM
McCain needs to stay on this corruption message and make some powerful TV spots(since the MSM will under report it or ignore it). He also needs to turn Palin lose and stop managing her so much. After all, she is the one with the best record of going after government corruption and winning.
duff65 on September 18, 2008 at 2:42 PM
The RTC cost us $125 billion. In other words, they bought and sold off $400 billion in S&L loans and properties and lost more than 25 cents on each dollar. It also contributed to the deficits of the early nineties which cost Bush I his job. I guess I should have also noted RTC as cause number 3 for the present problems, because the implicit backing of the government aided the lax policies which led to what is going on now.
Vashta.Nerada on September 18, 2008 at 2:47 PM
I am so livid about this entire situation! It is time for politicians to go to jail!
http://conservativepolitics.today.com/2008/09/18/its-time-for-washington-politicans-to-go-directly-to-jail/
Virginia Shanahan on September 18, 2008 at 2:50 PM
Correction…you never intended to vote for McCain.
I think you were one of the original MDS’rs…get over it you are acting like a Paul supporter or something even more weird.
right2bright on September 18, 2008 at 2:51 PM
This was very well played. McCain waited for The Annointed One to open his mouth. It took a day or so and Obama got out on a limb and McCain promptly sawed the limb off behind him.
The vacuousness of Obama eclipses even that of another unnamed candidate.
csdeven on September 18, 2008 at 2:55 PM
Hey, wasn’t Obammy’s granny a bank vice president? Maybe he should start tauting banking experience in his voluminous resume.
Brat on September 18, 2008 at 2:56 PM
I see, are you calling me a liar?
Sorry, weak, and wrong…. and insulting.
After he picked Palin I stated more than once that I was now going to vote for McCain. Palin was an OUTSIDER to Washington, and because of her pick, I was giving him the benefit of the doubt, and supporting the ticket.
But then? Even after saying time and again the border security came first, he puts tells Univision that he will put forth Comprehensive Immigration reform on the first day of his admin…
Now this, which is ANOTHER increase in the scope and power of the government.
Please explain to me, with your oh so great phychic powers (since you seem to know what I’m thinking), just where I am incorrect about McCain’s stated stances?
Cap and Trade.
Immigration.
New Federal Board which will have PROACTIVE oversite of the banking industry..
Not to mention his statement that he never voted for a fence?
Along with his past histroy, of helping to create an appointed board which can “regulate” Free Political Speech?
Dyrangement Syndrome? No, just have my eyes open…
Romeo13 on September 18, 2008 at 3:02 PM
No two ways about it – McCain MUST make this a nationwide commercial . . . STAT!
It’s the only way to get around the MSM.
Marybeth on September 18, 2008 at 3:04 PM
Olde man McSame better be checkin’ that musty seaman’s trunk in his closet.
He’s got some nasty olde loose dry bones rattlin’ ‘round in there…!
J_Gocht on September 18, 2008 at 3:05 PM
It’s about time.
Playing the victim regarding the “Lipstick on a Pig” comment was dumb. Leave the victomology to the Deomcrats.
“The Pharrisees were community organizers and Pontius Pilate voted ‘present’”
AMDG on September 18, 2008 at 3:16 PM
That’s how McCain will clean Obama’s clock- he’s fast on his feet; teleprompters only get in his way. Obama on the other hand is going to need someone to feed him the answers into his earpiece. Stock up on popcorn for the massacre!
NightmareOnKStreet on September 18, 2008 at 3:17 PM
Yeah. Keep whipping that dead horse.
McCain was cleared of all wrong doing.
“actions were not improper nor attended with gross negligence and did not reach the level of requiring institutional action against him….Senator McCain has violated no law of the United States or specific Rule of the United States Senate.”
For someone who claims to only want the truth, you sure spend a lot of time obfuscating it.
csdeven on September 18, 2008 at 3:24 PM
I saw it live on Fox this morning. I loved the prepared comments, but McCain utterly butchered the key line where he was connecting the corrupt CEO’s to Obama’s campaign. “Fannie, no Freddie, no yeah Fannie” It was hard to watch. Then driving to work listening to Rush, he played the audio and the delivery was perfect. Rush was kind enough to clean it up for radio, but it will not work on youtube.
tommylotto on September 18, 2008 at 3:25 PM
Again! Harder!
HIT HIM AGAIN!
Red Cloud on September 18, 2008 at 3:38 PM
Okay people, let’s just focus on keeping the snake oil salesman out of the oval office. We can argue logistics with McCain later.
There’s bigger fish to fry here.
I said it before, I’ll say it again. I’d rather have a mild headache than a severe case of hemmorrhoids any day of the week.
Pcoop on September 18, 2008 at 3:39 PM
Who I might ask; could have a closer association with or be better positioned to provide first or second hand advice, for that matter, on that fiasco…?
J_Gocht on September 18, 2008 at 3:41 PM
This should be the only speech McCain gives, right up to the first debate.
Obama sent out another panic fundraising email right after this speech was given. It talks about Obama’s plan for the economy, which is……$1000 tax rebates to middle class families.
Maybe that will work. I think most voters are not going to just go for the handout this time around.
rockmom on September 18, 2008 at 3:49 PM
Nice work McCain. This needs to happen more. Especially with Barack on video yesterday saying there’s no need for an investigation.
alteredbeat on September 18, 2008 at 4:06 PM
Damn–McCain finally got my memo
I see that the fraud-troll Gocht is here, and the foreign clueless talking points troll KentAllard also.
Mention McCain’s name, and…..presto!! Trolls can’t resist the light
exit question: which is the dumber, more vile troll?
Janos Hunyadi on September 18, 2008 at 4:10 PM
McCain illustrates his quick wit, poor judgment and sharp temper in one short burst.
We shouldn’t be too critical about that, however; McSame after all, was holding forth at a German restaurant in Ohio with 27 reporters, while Obama was addressing a quarter million Germans overseas.
I’d be damn pissed too…!
J_Gocht on September 18, 2008 at 4:14 PM
He’ll probably apologize for this tomorrow, like the confused old man that he is.
an_abstraction on September 18, 2008 at 4:17 PM
Hallo Janos,
-a intelligencia van a leg–bb nyilvánvaló ma délután!
Volna egy jó nap…!
J_Gocht on September 18, 2008 at 4:24 PM
Yes, because we all know that Oblahblah is running for Chancellor of Germany. Or is it President of the World? I wonder…
bryan2369 on September 18, 2008 at 4:29 PM
Speak English or get out!
bryan2369 on September 18, 2008 at 4:30 PM
I’d just to apologize for an_abstraction, fucking dipshit that he is.
alteredbeat on September 18, 2008 at 4:31 PM
So cs_, the Senate only accused him of “poor judgment”…!
Well now, right there; that’s the kinda guy I’d want with his shaky olde finger on the red button…!
Hey, he’d be both my first and last choice…?
You…?
J_Gocht on September 18, 2008 at 4:33 PM
Yet we can’t even get Oslima to do a joint town hall and answer questions from the voters. He is basically saying “F U!”.
csdeven on September 18, 2008 at 4:33 PM
That wasn’t your point. My response was an attempt to shame you into being as honest as you want others to be. Can you rectify that character flaw in yourself or will you simply pretend it didn’t happen?
csdeven on September 18, 2008 at 4:35 PM
rockmom on September 18, 2008 at 1:56 PM
But why is everybody chalking it up to GREED on Wall Street?
While I am sure folks on Wall Street are out to make a buck or two, this is not the biggest villains, surely?
Sir Napsalot on September 18, 2008 at 4:36 PM
Janos started this about two weeks ago.
Jump on his arse…!
He,he,he…!
Or get out your dictionary; a little real intellectual stimulation might improve your outlook in general.
May be not…?
J_Gocht on September 18, 2008 at 4:40 PM
(pulling my shotgun out of the closet) Anybody know the bag limit on trolls?
CC
CapedConservative on September 18, 2008 at 4:53 PM
OK, “she who must be obeyed” has tried that particular tack on me for more than forty years and I’m still as dense and insipid as I was when we tied the knot.
You can give ‘er your best shot though…!
More power and inspiration to yah, cs_…!
I’m an open book with blank pages.
J_Gocht on September 18, 2008 at 4:57 PM
WooHoo! You go Johnny!! w00t!
skatz51 on September 18, 2008 at 4:58 PM
I tried to give you the benefit of the doubt, but it’s clear that the troll label your fellow members have tied around your neck is deserved. I just hope it was something you were trying to do rather than it being a cause and effect result of your personality. Of course only you can answer that question for yourself.
csdeven on September 18, 2008 at 5:04 PM
Just keep telling it, and the media will have to cover it at some point.
Seixon on September 18, 2008 at 5:07 PM
In fact… Make a God damn commercial about it! Chop-chop!
Seixon on September 18, 2008 at 5:07 PM
it’s Open Season, Hombre. Start with the oldest and weakest to ‘thin out the herd’: Gocht
Janos Hunyadi on September 18, 2008 at 5:12 PM
They aren’t worth the effort AND they like the attention.
csdeven on September 18, 2008 at 5:15 PM
Today I heard Corzine flapping his gums about how McCain should be wanting to rid of the man at the top {the President} instead of the SEC director, Cox.
Does that man have an idea how stupid that is?
For one thing Corzine got rich off of Wall Street. Very rich. But he has a D behind his name so that makes him good rich vs bad rich.
McCain is not running against Bush, who will be gone in any event, he is running against Obama.
And Bush did not create this situation. I don’t think Cox did either as far as that is concerned, but there is ample evidence of Bush pressuring Congress for more oversight of the credit markets for years.
Terrye on September 18, 2008 at 5:15 PM
Right on the mark Janos. The aid and comfort provided to the Bambi camp by those two America-hating liberals and democrat trolls that seem to infest this blog and try to keep everyone else here from celebrating our great victory coming in November is beyond disgusting.
When I think of the needless discord that these trolls have caused with their twisted vile it is very difficult for me to contain the intense anger and outrage I feel. In fact, I’m all set to volunteer as an interrogator at Guantanamo – just so long as I’m permitted to take a plane load of vile trolls like them down there with me.
FeralCat on September 18, 2008 at 5:16 PM
Manly my man, I luv your optimism!
At this panic level; I’m thinkin’… “Shaky olde man goose gravy” is the first item on the menu.
Then again there’s still about 47 days left for him to really screw up…!
Naw, stick a fork in ‘im he’s done!
J_Gocht on September 18, 2008 at 5:26 PM
When FecalPussy shows up, you know a site has gone to the dogs.
flenser on September 18, 2008 at 5:28 PM
Come on now, wildcat…
You know you have more fun dumpin’ on us trolls as you refer to us; than playin’ grab arse with your buds and you really do enjoy it!
Be honest.
J_Gocht on September 18, 2008 at 5:32 PM
There are those who say that even the worst humor and the worst sex are still good, but obviously there are exceptions as your kind of humor is comparable to having sex with Helen Thomas, but whatever floats your boat, fester.
FeralCat on September 18, 2008 at 5:36 PM
Now a discerning cat such as myself can detect some humor there Sergeant.
FeralCat on September 18, 2008 at 5:41 PM
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